19. Damian

Chapter nineteen

Damian

T he week passed much quicker than I imagined. Owen and I had some epic make-out sessions, but the whole living together was clearly freaking him out. I mean, I understood, but damn, I really wanted to do things with that sexy little body of his.

I was beginning to get bored, especially since Mr. Stages, Owen's boss, told me I was putting myself at risk of liability by driving and suggested I no longer do that professionally. "You have a significant portfolio, and we've not secured it from liability yet. I recommend you find ways to entertain yourself," he'd said.

Of course, my mind went to his employee and all the ways I could entertain myself with him. I was moping about being lonely. I'm guessing because I looked as bored as I was, Orville, who I'm surprised to say I was getting used to seeing, told me I should begin my training .

At first, I had no idea what he was referring to. I'd forgotten the message on the parchment. I was supposed to use the advice from the parchment to train.

I didn't hesitate to pull it out and place it on the old desk that hadn't been replaced in my magical redecorating.

The moment I touched the quill to the parchment, words began to form.

Excellent, you're ready to get started.

"Yes," I replied. "Can you hear me, or do I have to write?"

I can hear you perfectly fine. Okay, let's get started. First, you should allow my words to transfer to speech.

"Okay. How do I do that?" I asked.

The parchment took me through about an hour of instruction before I was finally able to do the spell, or whatever it was I did to make the words form audible speech.

"That took longer than it should've." The words were spoken as they appeared on the parchment.

"Sorry, I'm not really sure how this all works."

"No need to apologize, but you will need to trust your instincts. Have you not tried your powers before now?"

"Um, the house redecorated itself when I was dreaming."

"No, son, that was a spell I left on the home, just as this parchment is a spell my predecessors cast before they passed. Have you not done anything else on your own? "

I thought for a moment, then remembered fixing Owen's nose. "Oh, yeah, I healed Owen's nose after Alice broke it. She slammed the front door in his face," I said, chuckling. Alice was a total sweetheart. Yes, she was a ghost, but she was one of the nicest people anyone could hope to meet. "She still regrets it."

The parchment didn't say anything back right away, which confused me. Finally, it responded.

"Healing is a powerful spell. One some wizards never master. A healing spell, being your first, does give me insight into what kind of wizard you will become. We can discuss that later. Let's begin preparing your most important weapon. Your staff."

For most of the day, the parchment, which I now referred to as Elias since he was actually speaking to me from across the veil, gave me a lecture on the uses of the staff.

"It gives you balance, as a staff would anyone, but your staff is more important than that. It pulls its power from the earth, water, air, and fire first—the four elements. When you use your powers without it, you draw from your own person. When healing, that's necessary, but when battling dark forces, you must draw the power from the four elements, therefore not exhausting your energy reserves."

It was all fascinating information, but I grew weary of the lectures. I felt like I was back in school. One of my high school teachers was obsessed with American history. He would sometimes spend an entire hour talking about it and by the time the bell rang announcing time to switch classes, we were all asleep.

"You've grown quiet. Have I lost you?"

"Um, maybe a bit. It's a lot of information to take in," I admitted.

"Ah, yes, I can get a bit long-winded. Okay, you have my permission to stop me when I ramble. Remember, I can't see you from where I am. Is Orville with you?"

I searched the room but didn't see the ghost. "No, I don't believe so."

"Ah, you are in the attic room, are you not?"

"I am," I confirmed.

"I should've specified earlier that you should only use the parchment in the attic room. There are wards that can't be breached there. It required too much power to create those levels of wards around the entire home, but the attic was doable. The parchment will attract dark energy, some very nasty dark energy. With its link to the veil, it could possibly open a way for those entities in the world. You should understand these entities are hell-bent on conquering the light and all that is good."

I remembered the man who'd stood threateningly across from the deli the day Owen's boss had given me the parchment and quill. He'd even communicated with me without being close or speaking. The threat was very clear.

"I think I might have already met one of them. It was the day I received the parchment and quill. "

"That's too bad. If you've already been spotted, the time before you're forced to battle may be shorter than I'd hoped."

"So, when do I create this staff?" I asked, feeling as if we might need to move this conversation along.

"Ah, I understand why you'd want to proceed, but unfortunately, the staff chooses you, not the other way around. You will call it to you, as my staff was called to me, and the wizards called all their staffs before us. If you're lucky, it comes to you before a need arises. There was a rumor that one wizard centuries ago didn't receive his until he was old. There should be a star painted in the middle of the floor. Can you see it?"

I searched around the room, and finally, I saw it. "I think I see it. Is it gold?"

"Yes. Sit in the middle of the star. Let me know when you're there."

I did as he asked.

"Now, close your eyes and visualize a staff. It doesn't matter if you know what it should look like or not. You can just imagine a stick if you wish. The staff will manifest itself and be what it chooses to be."

I closed my eyes, and at first, the only thing I could visualize was a wand from childhood memories of playing with my friends and I as witches and wizards. Then I forced my mind to remember what I could from Lord of the Rings and Gandolf's staff .

"Once you have an image, hold it in your mind. Let it sit there. Don't try to force it; just let it be."

My stomach felt queasy, and with my eyes closed, I felt the room spinning. The image in my mind shifted from a wooden stick with a knob on top, all I had remembered about Gandolf's staff, to one of ornate gold. Pure gold , I thought as the image created itself in my mind.

Titanium rings began to wind themselves around the gold exterior. I only knew because I had a passenger who used to be a blacksmith. I'd drive him from downtown to Eugene to visit his mother in a nursing home, then wait for him and take him back to Seattle. It paid well, but it was a long trip.

When metals mix, they're called alloys, and this guy made titanium and gold alloys for dental offices.

As I watched the two metals combine, it became clear that was what was happening. Titanium and gold were both worth a ton of money. Surely, this wouldn't be my staff?

I continued to watch and could hear Elias in the background, but I couldn't make out what he was saying. I was mesmerized by the visions in my mind.

Finally, the metalwork was complete. I felt my right hand, my dominant hand, tingle, and then watched as the staff modified itself so my handprint formed on the side. I instinctively knew it would give me a place to hold the staff comfortably.

Then, to my surprise, different types of wood came from all directions. I recognized weird purple wood from the Amazon, although I couldn't remember its name. Then ebony from Africa, oak, and redwood from here. The wood encircled the staff and formed what appeared to be a flame on top.

As I watched, a light formed inside the wooden flame. It burned brightly but didn't burn the wood. A simple crystal orb sat inside the flame when the light faded.

"Cool," I said. The staff must have heard my voice, although I have no idea why I knew that, because I felt myself rise off the floor and float slightly above the ground.

I could hear Elias now.

"Damian, what's happening? Damian, are you okay?"

I cleared my throat, which was raw, like I'd been screaming for hours. "Um, yeah, and my staff found me."

I couldn't see or hear Elias's reactions, but I could feel him. If he'd been in front of me, I think he would've gasped. There was another long pause.

"Damian, I don't know of any time in history that a wizard was given his staff before months but, usually, years of training."

My body was beginning to ache as if I'd gotten the flu or something. I took the staff to a chair behind the desk and in front of the parchment.

"Um, but that's a good thing, right?" I asked.

"No, I assume it means you will face a nasty foe soon. How are you feeling?"

A cold sweat had developed on my brow.

"Not so good," I admitted .

"Call Orville before you pass out. I must instruct him how to treat you."

Orville appeared, and using my newly honed staff, I did the spell Elias told me to do to give Orville access to hear him through the parchment.

"Damian was nowhere near ready for that level of magic. He will be extremely depleted. He needs round-the-clock care and treatment. Damian, are you able to get to your bed?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't think so."

The last thing I heard was Elias instructing Orville to get me to my bed and then something about making teas or…? Then the world went black.